What's Going On In Our World?

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Dear Katherine, I would like to hear your thoughts on this crazy world. The chaos and hate are out of control. I heard an astrologist talk about the current alignment of the planets causing this. Your thoughts in a blog would be appreciated.

An Astrological Answer

If I had to pick just one planetary aspect to symbolize "what is going on" right now in our world, it would be Pluto in Capricorn.

In astrology, Pluto rules permanent transformations of all kinds. It rules the shadow powers that have been hiding and must come out every now and then to be cleansed from our group consciousness. Pluto rules the sign of Scorpio, which is represented by the mythical phoenix, a bird who occasionally bursts into flames, and then regenerates itself from the ashes.

Pluto is spending the years 2008 through 2024 in the sign of Capricorn, which rules worldly structures such as big businesses and governments. Capricorn is ruled by Saturn, a planet that is considered the karmic task master of the zodiac. Putting the two of these together in the way that they are now...is kind of like stuffing a fire-breathing dragon (Pluto) into a small but powerful cage (Saturn). It tests both of them. The cage might break or melt. The dragon may burn out or get its wings clipped. Most likely, both will be transformed in some way.

The last time that Pluto was in Capricorn was during the American Revolution 😱 and also a few years later when our forefathers signed the Declaration of Independence. 😄

This is how Pluto works. It destroys whatever is blocking the way of evolutionary growth; and then recreates a stronger foundation for going forward. The worst thing that we can do during a Pluto event is to resist it entirely, because that will simply not work, and it will make the "destruction and clearing" process more painful. Things are changing, whether we like it or not.

Another no-win behavior is to get so immersed in the chaos that we forget what is really important to us (like relationships, kindness, compassion). When that happens, we will lose more than our comfort zone structures. The world is in another vibration now than it was during the Revolutionary War. We have the opportunity to embrace and create necessary changes with less violence and more heart. Whether we will or not ... is still being played out.

From a Holistic Healing Perspective:

Pluto in Capricorn fits right in with a holistic therapy perspective of what is called a "healing crisis." Our world is releasing old toxins on the way to better health. While that is a positive sign in general, it does not take the danger away. Healing crises can be acute (and deadly) if they happen at a pace that the body, mind or heart cannot tolerate.

If we treated our nation as if it were our body, then it seems like we have the symptoms of an autoimmune disorder. We need to stop the rampant inflammation and attacks upon ourselves. We need the left and right legs to stop kicking each other, and realize that they must work together, to move towards common ground solutions. Getting to those solutions will require calming the rage (inflammation) and sharing the healthy assets (chi, blood, and lymph flow) with all parts of our body. We need to accept that it will take time to rebuild broken bones and broken relationships. The gift is that we can rebound and create a healthy world for us all.

How to Deal With It Personally

Pluto in Capricorn is the epitome of a "dark night of soul," and not only does it currently influence our world, it touches individuals. We are each influenced in some part of our lives to make permanent transformations in order to be healthier, more successful and happy. Your astrology chart reveals what area of your life is most affected, and whether or not you will feel this on a deeply personal level, or more in the background.

If you just want to know how to cope in a straight-forward, black and white way? Well, you must understand that Pluto/Saturn problems are not simple. They are life altering, painful, and take years to experience and heal. Given that backdrop, here is an overall approach to the emotional anguish of Pluto/Saturn. It has helped real people to transmute their pain into a legacy of love:

1. Acknowledge what is going on in your own life (especially since 2008) that is not responding to your usual way of doing things ... no matter how you have tried. Acknowledge that on some level, "the way it has always been" is not ever going to work again.

2. Learn healthier ways to express strong emotions. If you are dealing with a bona fide Pluto/Saturn issue, then some event or situation will unleash strong feelings. These could include shame, guilt, resentment, hatred, rage, terror, and hopelessness. Truly, the feelings that come up can be so painful that you may not be able to verbalize or express them in mixed company. Communication with others may have to wait until the "inflammation" has healed. You may feel blocked, stuck, trapped (even imprisoned) and utterly unable to come up with a solution.

If you try to make decisions or act from any of these feelings, you will most likely make the situation far, far worse than it already is.

Emotional clearing techniques can be helpful. The essence of these practices involve natural ways for you to erase or soften recurring, bad feelings by:

1. Accepting them as "real" forces that are influencing you.
2. Consciously choosing to release them.
3. Facing the causes of these blockages and being honest enough to transform yourself. Note: this is not the same as noticing a feeling and repressing it like Scarlett O'Hara ("I"ll think about that tomorrow!"), or projecting it upon some person or thing outside of yourself: ("It's Congress' fault!")

It may well be a problem that is exacerbated by others. Knowing that will not help you to get rid of the feelings in this moment though. When we blame others, we give away our power. The only person you can really change is yourself.

When we can "catch" ourselves feeling these strong energies, we can then say inwardly, "I don't want to feel like this anymore, and I don't want to dump this toxic waste onto anyone else, either. I want (all of us) to feel happy, safe and at peace." You need to create your own way of saying this, in order to make it feel true for you. The important thing to assert is your intention to yourself and to God, the Universe.

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3. When you are more clear of intense emotions, you will then be receptive to what WILL work. Be open to knowing what the real problems are, and not just what you have thought they were. Don't expect these answers to come quickly or easily. Some of the answers may shock or upset you. Some of them will be humbling, and some will cause you to say to yourself, "Why did I never see that before?" It is because you have buried these answers in your own shadow.

Open to them with a loving intention, and they will come to you in a way that you can understand, when you are ready to understand.

Meanwhile, redirect yourself into some useful activity.

4. Then all you have to do is repeat this:

Every...

Time...

The Bad Vibes...

Come up...

Think of it as walking across a desert to get to the Land of Plenty. It takes awhile. It is exhausting, and you wonder when will the desert ever end.

It will. I have seen visions of a happier world for a long time, and I am not the only one. However, neither I nor anyone else can tell you exactly when or how it will come to pass. This is because in spite of storms that we may have no control over, our fate always relies in part on how we choose to respond.

Our world needs us to hold fast to the highest vibrations of love, compassion and joy...even as we endure the fumes of anger and distrust that billow around us.

When enough people have embraced the higher vibrations, we will, individually and collectively, realize solutions that simply cannot be found in the midst of chaos.

Let's all bloom together,